「佛性者，名大信心」：論漢譯《大般涅槃經》對「信」意義的深化="The Buddha-nature is the great śraddhā": A Study of the Transformation of the Meaning of the Śraddhā in the Chinese Version of the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāņa Sūtra
This paper explores the meaning of the śraddhā in the Chinese version of the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, how the notion has been deepened—from the perspective of the history of Indian Buddhism—and how it thus comes to connect with other important concepts in the Sūtra, such as the icchentika and the Buddha-nature. The śraddhā is defined explicitly in the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, first, by its object, meaning the belief in the teachings of the Sūtra and in the substantial reality of the Buddha-nature, the Buddha, and the nitya-sukha-ātman-śubha, etc. Such a change in the object of the śraddhā is closely related to the historical background in which the Sūtra was composed. Secondly, the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra sees the icchentika as those who turn their backs on the śraddhā: “The unbelievers are named the icchentika.” Having no faith in Buddhist teachings, and thus depriving themselves of all access to the path toward final liberation, these people are described as having their kuśala-mūla “amputated.” But neither their unbelief nor the state of “kuśala-mūla amputation” is permanent, since an icchentika always has the chance to recover his or her faith and belief under the guidance of believing peers. Lastly, the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra also establishes a relationship between the śraddhā and the Buddha-nature by prescribing the śraddhā as a crucial part of Buddhist practices. However, it only serves as a point of departure, and its goal cannot be reached without the cooperation of other practices. The śraddhā is thus the “originating cause” or “doing cause” that triggers other actual practices, rather than the “enlightening cause” which allows one to gain a direct insight into the nirvāṇa and the Buddha-nature. Besides, the doctrine that “all beings possess the Buddha-nature” in fact presupposes that all human beings will eventually develop their faith in the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, therefore rendering the Buddha-nature and the śraddhā highly similar at the fundamental level. This is the reason why the Sūtra clearly equates the śraddhā to the Buddha-nature by asserting that “the Buddha-nature is the great śraddhā.” Such belief is not simply confidence or trust, but the unbounded faith—the “great śraddhā”—that has integrated itself with the practices for the Buddha-nature and the teachings of the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra.
